A Sacrifice of Love
by Ethereal Prey
Summary: another Alt dimension fic, Maeve is betrothed to another...


   
  
A Sacrifice of Love  
  
By:  Ethereal Prey  
  
~Part 1~  
  
Sinbad stood there staring at the beauty that stood before him. She was so beautiful. Yet in her eyes they held so much pain. He reached out to her. And she drew back.  
  
"I'm so sorry" she started to cry  
  
Sinbad pulled her into his arms, and held her, trying to soothe her best as he could. He knew that if he let go, he would lose her forever.  
  
"I wanted to tell you, I did"  
  
"Shh, it's ok now"  
  
"I just didn't know how to"  
  
She was right, she did't know how to. How could she tell him that she was promised to another man? How could she? The tears just rolled off her cheeks like waterfall. Sinbad hated seeing her cry. Because he knew there was nothing he could do to stop it. He felt so weak and helpless. He held her, knowing that in this moment, that only moment, he could have her. That after that she would leave and walk out that door and never come back. That someone else would hold her, and kiss her and love her.  
  
"I love you always Maeve, nothing will change that"  
  
Maeve looked up from her tear infested eyes. He was so beautiful, his eyes, she could get lost in them forever.  
  
"I love you Sinbad, I'll always love you. I won't give myself to him! I won't!"  
  
It tore Sinbad inside, knowing that she would marry someone else. That she was promised to another.  
  
"I love you so much, it feels like my heart is going to explode" Maeve said  
  
Sinbad smiled and kissed her head.  
  
"Love me Sinbad, love me" Maeve held him tightly to her.  
  
Sinbad lifted her head up and kissed her softly. He brushed away the tears and deepened the kiss. His arms lowered and started to tug at her shirt.  He stopped and looked at her.  
  
"Do you want me to stop?" Sinbad asked  
  
"No" Maeve replied as she pulled him back into her arms  
  
She kissed him back, her hands pulling off his shirt. She found her way down to his pants, and they slid off easily.  
  
Sinbad pulled the flimsy shirt off her, revealing her glowing skin. His touch make her melt. He started to remove her skirt, when he stopped again.  
  
"We don't have to go any further if you don't want to"  
  
"I want to" Maeve kissed him back  
  
Her clothes fell to the ground, and she pulled him closer to her. He pushed her up against the wall. He was consumed by lust and love for her, that he couldn't control himself, he just wanted her. He lifted her up to meet his hips, her legs lifted up and around him. Her back brazed the wall several times, as she was being forced up on it.  
  
   
  
Her muscles tightened, her toes curled up, and her fingers deep in his hair, pulled him into her chest. She screamed out for him.  
  
Sinbad stopped, and kissed her. He carried her over to the bed and lowered her gently.  
  
"Do you want me to stop?" Sinbad asked  
  
"Stop when I tell you to!" Maeve pulled his head down and kissed him hard. She tightened her legs around him.  
  
Sinbad kissed the outline of her face, and then neck, slowly down to her breasts.  Maeve's back arched back as she felt his warm tongue on her body. His warm body, drew swirls all over her body.  
  
"I love you Maeve" Sinbad said as he kissed her stomach.  
  
That night would be the only night he would ever be able to love her. It would be the only moment they would ever share. He loved her, in a way that just made ever fiber in her body ache and explode. That night was the night he told her he loved her.  
  
In the morning he saw the slight bruises on her back. He held her close and fell alseep. Maeve awoke and kissed him one last time, before she left quietly.  
  
The door clicked, and that was it. She walked away from him and out of his life...  Maeve walked back into the house, a house she hated.  
  
"Where have you been?"  
  
Maeve spun around and saw who it was.  
  
"Out father"  
  
"Where? You're getting married today, and you just run off?!"  
  
"I just wanted to be alone alright father?! Leave me be!"  
  
"You were with him weren't you?!"  
  
"What if I was? I'm getting married today! What difference does it make! WHAT?!" Maeve screamed out as she ran to her room  
  
She slammed the door shut and threw herself onto her bed. Today was the worst day of her life. She cried and cried and saw her wedding dress hanging there.  
  
"Oh Sinbad! If only we could be together"  
  
Maeve rested her head on her arms, and thought back, to when she first met him.  
  
She was outside roaming the hillsides. When suddenly she saw someone. She reached for her sword which hung snugly by her side. She saw that it was a man, dressed in black leather, looking much like a pirate. He walked closer to her, and closer, until she could take no more.  
  
"Back off with you!" Maeve moved back  
  
"I just wanted-"  
  
"Oh I know what you wanted! Haven't I seen the likes of you before, big seafaring men in their big ships, taking over any land they wish by force!"  
  
"Look!"  
  
"No you look! You're trespassing! This is my family's land and I will ask you kindly to leave it"  
  
"Well, you see I'm kinda lost"  
  
"The ocean's that way" she moved her head  
  
"I just-"  
  
"MAEVE!"  
  
"DERMOTT!"  
  
Maeve jumped into Dermott's arms as he held her.  
  
"It's been a while sister" Dermott said  
  
"Aye it has been" Maeve replied  
  
"Maeve, this is Sinbad, the captain of the ship I'm on" Dermott said  
  
"We were informally introduced" Sinbad smiled  
  
"The big oaf was trespassing on our land" Maeve replied  
  
"Oh, relax you! I swear it's like your a guardian hawk or something" Dermott said  
  
Maeve smiled, she wiped her tears away, and looked at the dress once again. She wanted to shred it. The ladies came into the room, and helped her change into it, while they brushed her long red hair that reached down to her waist.  
  
Maeve and Sinbad were walking across the green fields of her family's land.  
  
"You've got a lot of land" Sinbad said  
  
"Most of it comes from my ancestors that settled here eons ago" Maeve replied  
  
"What do you do with it? Just let it sit here?"  
  
"Pretty much"  
  
"Seems like a waste"  
  
Then there came the rumbling sound of horses coming over the hills. The two looked up.  
  
"Brieans!" Maeve hissed  
  
"Who are they?" Sinbad asked  
  
"Our enemies from the north" Maeve pulled out her sword  
  
"So we meet again!" one of the horseman said  
  
"Get off my land!" Maeve yelled  
  
"Make us!"  
  
The sword clashed as Maeve and Sinbad tried to fight them off. Sinbad pulled on of the horsemen off their horses and got on it. He rode it near the horseman that was fighting with Maeve and kicked him.  
  
"Shall we?" Sinbad extened his hand out to her  
  
"We shall" Maeve reached for it, and he pulled her up onto the back of the horse.  
  
"Maybe nextime" Maeve said to the fallen horseman  
  
Sinbad and Maeve rode off and into the forest. They made it past the clearing and stopped.  
  
"I think we lost em" Sinbad said  
  
"They are a fiesty bunch"  
  
"What's the deal with them anyways?"  
  
"They're from the north of the island, made up of local tribes and clans. They oppose us, and attack us when they feel the need to"  
  
"You guys never tried to work it out?"  
  
"We tried, but peace is not an option right now. My family's land is on the borderline. They claim that their ancestors own it, while we say otherwise. It's not pretty"  
  
"I see"  
  
Suddenly the horse tripped, and threw Maeve off. She fell hard onto the ground. Her knee scraped across a rock as she fell onto her back. Sinbad jumped off the horse.  
  
"Are you alright?" he asked her deeply concerned  
  
"Yeah I think I'll make it" Maeve said looking down at her knee.  
  
"You're bleeding" Sinbad pulled out a red sash that he wore a long time ago and gently wiped the blood away.  
  
"Ouch!"  
  
"Sorry" Sinbad lowered his head and kissed her knee, before wrapped the sash around it tightly. Maeve blushed slightly.  
  
"Dermott will have my head for this" Sinbad said as he lifted her up.  
  
"You don't have to carry me"  
  
"Well tell that to the horse then"  
  
Sinbad placed her on the horse, and then climbed on himself, but sitting in back of her.  
  
"Don't want the same thing happening again now"  
  
Sinbad took the reins and the horse started to walk. His arm slid around her waist and held onto her tightly.  
  
Maeve smiled as her hand reached up and touched his hand. The wind blew back her red hair onto Sinbad's face. There was a slight fragrance to it. He leaned forward a bit, and buried his face in her hair for only a moment. Maeve could feel his warm breath on her skin, and blushed more when she felt him nuzzle her neck.  
  
Maeve stared at herself blankly in the mirror. She remembered that day so well, it was when she fell in love with him. The ladies had placed a wreath of flowers in her hair and tied some around her wrists. She was so sad, and pitiful. The man she loved, would not be the one she married.  
  
"You look beautiful" her father said  
  
"Do I? I feel like my soul has been ripped from me!" Maeve yelled  
  
"My child, you will understand everything-"  
  
"I understand that you are forcing me into this marriage! I understand that you are putting the whole weight of our survival on me! I understand that the man that I love is going to wake up alone and know that I left him!"  
  
"Maeve, please!"  
  
"No! I hate you for what you're making me do!"  
  
"Your marraige to him will bring peace to our land! This union will ensure us peace! Isn't that more important than one man?"  
  
Maeve looked away.  "Once our clans are joined there can be peace at last, all the fighting will end. And it will be because of you"  
  
"Why don't you make Dermott marry someone?!"  
  
"It has to be you, you know that"  
  
And then from outside came a crash. Maeve's father looked out the window.  
  
"I can't believe it!" he said as he walked away  
  
Maeve ran to the window, and smiled.  
  
"He's here! I knew it!" Maeve smiled  
  
"Let me through!" Sinbad demanded  
  
"Guests only!" the man replied  
  
"Well I am a guest, I'm the bride's lover!" Sinbad yelled  
  
"Stop it!" Dermott yelled as he came forward, "Leave now, before anything else happens"  
  
"You know I can't" Sinbad said  
  
"You know I can't let you" Dermott replied  
  
Sinbad and his crew drew out their swords, as did Dermott and the other men. A fight emerged, Doubar grabbed two Celts and banged their heads teogether. Dermott didn't want to fight his friends, but his responsiblities to his family made him.  
  
"Doubar! Can you hold them down?" Sinbad yelled  
  
"Go! Get her!" Doubar yelled back  
  
Sinbad made a dash and into the house. He ran up the stairs and opened the door. Maeve jumped in his arms.  
  
"I knew you'd come!" Maeve kissed him  
  
"I couldn't leave without you"  
  
"But you will now" Dermott said  
  
"Dermott!" Maeve yelled  
  
   
  
Sinbad's world became dark, the last thing he saw was Maeve's face, as she held him in her arms.  Maeve craddled him in her arms. She looked up bitterly at what her brother had done. He slid the sword back into it's sheath. He had knocked him with the handle of his sword, knocking him unconcious.  
  
Her father came into the room with Doubar and the rest of the crew being held by the Celts.  
  
"Take your captain and leave Eire"  
  
"No!" Maeve held onto him  
  
Dermott bent down and pulled the lifeless body away from her. Her father held her back as she screamed for Sinbad. Dermott handed Sinbad over to Doubar.  
  
"Sail far away from here and never look back, ever" Dermott said  
  
Doubar nodded. The men relased the crew, and Doubar swung Sinbad over his shoulder and carried him out. Dermott and the other men followed to make sure they left.  
  
"Splash some water on your face, you're getting married" her father said as he left the room.  
  
Maeve cried, she wanted to be with Sinbad so badly, but she couldn't. She hated herself for not being able to stop crying.  
  
Finally she ripped the wreath of flowers off her head. She pulled her hair into a tight braid, and using the sash he used on her knee tied it. She ran to the window and saw Doubar and the crew making his way across.  
  
"Doubar! Doubar!" Maeve yelled  
  
He and the crew turned around. Maeve grabbed a small knife that was lying around, and in one swift slash the knife went through her hair. She looked at the long braid, and then leaned over the window.  
  
"Tell him that I love him. Tell him please!"  
  
"Aye lass, he already knows" Doubar replied  
  
Maeve tried to smile but couldn't. She dropped her long braid down and it landed on Doubar's shoulder.  
  
"So he can remember me" Maeve said  
  
Doubar smiled, and turned away and walked back to the port with his little brother.  
  
Maeve watched as they walked away, getting smaller into the distance, until there was nothing to see, nothing to hold onto.  
  
Maeve put the wreath back on her head, her hair barely touched her shoulders. She pulled it back into a bun and pulled a white sheet into the back to cover it.  
  
Dermott knocked on the door.  
  
"Maeve, it's time"  
  
Maeve looked at herself in the mirror. She picked up the knife and threw it at the mirror. It shattered.  
  
"Maeve!" Dermott burst through the doors  
  
He saw her sitting there staring at the broken mirror, unmoved.  
  
"Maeve, it's time" Dermott said  
  
"You send me a sheep among wolves brother"  
  
"You will unite both our clans and bring peace throughout the island. That is all that matters"  
  
"Peace is all that matters, my happiness doesn't"  
  
"You are the daughter of our clan leader, you know it has to be you and only you"  
  
"If only he had a daughter, then you would be marrying her"  
  
"But he doesn't, it has to be you"  
  
"Me"  
  
Dermott held her by hands.  
  
"I'm sorry it has to be you"  
  
He pulled her up and lead her down the stairs down to her eminent slaughter. She walked down the little aisle that was made. Her father gripped onto her arm as they walked down. He stopped and there she stood. She couldn't do it, she wouldn't do it.  
  
She felt the tears form in her eyes, swelling up, like the pain in her heart. She closed her eyes and took a step forward towards her own damnation.  
  
The groom looked at her, and saw under the white dress were brown boots? Strange he thought, he figured she would be wearing white slippers. But he thought nothing of it.  Maeve's legs wouldn't hold her, but she made her way there. She wanted to die.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Doubar raised anchor and the sails as well. He took a final look at Eire and took the Nomad out of the port. Sinbad lay there on deck, Dermott had hit him pretty hard. It was strange not to have Dermott on board, but the lines were drawn and boundaries formed. Firouz tended to Sinbad.  
  
Maeve held her hand out, and they placed a cloth on her hand, it was the pattern and design of her clan. They placed the cloth of her groom's clan on his hand. They turned to face each other. His hand was placed with hers, the cloth wrapped around each other's hands. Then finally a gold rope was wrapped around both their hands.  
  
"You two are now forever joined, your clans are forever joined. Let there always be a smile on both of you"  
  
The crowd cheered, as their dream of peace had been achieved. Maeve felt the tears fall down her face, not of joy, but of sadness. She was married. She looked up and saw his eyes, they were hazel, not blue. His hair brown, but no like his.  
  
He held her hand and lead her down the isle while the specatators sprayed ale on them. It was a loud joyous party.  
  
Maeve broke free, and ran into her room, and locked the door. No one seemed to notice. They were too busy have a good time. Maeve pulled off the dress, revealing the leather pants and tight fitting blue shirt under. She pulled off the damn veil and freed her hair. She put on her black cloak, befitting for her wedding day. She pulled out the bag from under her bed, and swung it over her shoulder.  
  
She went over to the window and looked down. She walked down the hall to another room on the back of the house. She climbed out the window and using the ivy growing on the side made her way to freedom. Her feet touched the ground and she ran, ran to the port, to him.  
  
"He will be there, I know it!"  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Sinbad watched the island of Eire get farther and farther. He used Firouz's magnescope and watched it get farther from him.  
  
"Are you just going to stand there?" Doubar asked  
  
"Yes, I'm going to stand here until it finally disappears, then I'll know what it feels inside my heart"  
  
"She was promised to another little brother"  
  
"She was promised to me"  
  
Doubar placed his hand on Sinbad's shoulder.  
  
"She was a pretty one wasn't she?"  
  
"She was more than that, she was the one Doubar, and I lost her"  
  
"No, you didn't, I lost her. If we could have just held them off longer-"  
  
"It's not your fault, Dermott had quite an arm." Sinbad feeling the bump on his head.  
  
"Dermott...I'll miss him around here"  
  
Sinbad kept staring at the island, they were only an hour away, an hour away from his love.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Maeve ran as fast as her legs could carry her. She pushed passed the people in the market, gasping for breath she ran to the port, to the dock where the Nomad was. She stopped dead in her tracks.  
  
"NO!" Maeve screamed  
  
The ship was no longer there, he had left without her. He left her! But what could she excepct? Him to wait for her? She did, in her heart she did. She couldn't believe it. There she was, already to leave her life behind her, everything, for him. And he left without her. He left her.  
  
She looked out at the horizon, and saw something. It was a small brown thing. She squinted her eyes to get a closer look.  It was the Nomad! She could still see it!  
  
"Sinbad! Sinbad!" Maeve dove into the water, and started swimming towards the Nomad, towards her love.  
  
"Sinbad" Doubar called out  
  
"What is it?" Sinbad turned around  
  
"There's something" Doubar walked closer to him, "I have to give you"  
  
"What?"  
  
"This" Doubar showed Sinbad the long braid of red hair, "She wanted you to have it"  
  
Sinbad smiled as he touched the soft hairs.  
  
"She gave me everything, and I couldn't even get to her"  
  
"Come and take the tiller little brother, it's your ship"  
  
"I'll be there"  
  
Sinbad looked down at the red braid. He remembered when it was free and sprawled over her bare back, the way she felt, the way she smelled, the way she tasted. He turned around and looked at the island. She was still there. With a little less hair, but she was still there.  
  
"Doubar! Turn the ship around!"  
  
"Sinbad!"  
  
"I'm the captain!"  
  
"Fine! Do it yourself!" Doubar let the tiller go.  
  
Sinbad smiled and took a final look through the magnescope.  
  
"Soon Maeve, we'll be together again"  
  
Sinbad looked and was about to put the magnascope down when he saw something.  
  
"What the?" Sinbad zoned in on the moving figure  
  
It was Maeve, she was still swimming towards the Nomad, she had great endurance and stamina to say the least. She had been swimming for an hour, she was getting tired, but soon, soon she would be with him.  
  
"Maeve! MAEVE!" Sinbad yelled  
  
"Sinbad?" Doubar asked concerned  
  
Sinbad dropped the magnescope and the lens shattered.  
  
"Lower the long boat!" Sinbad yelled  
  
"What?" Firouz said as he picked up the pieces to his invention.  
  
Sinbad released the ropes and the boat hit the waters. Doubar ran over to see what he was doing, while Rongar held onto the tiller.  Sinbad slid down the ropes and landed into the boat, and started rowing.  
  
"He's a man obsessed" Doubar said  
  
Sinbad started rowing towards Maeve, but the distance was too great.  Maeve could feel her tired muscles cramp. She knew that she couldn't keep this forever. If the ship didn't stop, her body would. But she had to keep going, she had to.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Dermott and his father walked around the house looking for Maeve. They walked into her room and saw the dress lying there.  
  
"Where has she gone?" her father asked  
  
"Where else?" Dermott replied  
  
"You know what you must do"  
  
"Must I?"  
  
"You must bring her back here, you must! You know what will happen if you don't. Only you can do it, you know where she is, you know where she's headed and who she's with"  
  
"I know she's happy"  
  
"But she must return, or war will errupt. Your new brother in law will not be happy to learn that his bride has run off with your friend!"  
  
"He was my captain father, I was part of his crew, but that all stopped today. He is no longer my friend"  
  
"You must bring her back"  
  
"I will father" Dermott walked out of the room with a lowered head.  
  
He had to bring his sister back, rip her from the man she loves and return her to a treaty. He knew that Sinbad wouldn't let her go. Dermott held onto his sword. There would be only one way this could end. One of them would have to die.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Sinbad rowed harder, and harder. He could see her with his own eyes. Maeve swam, she could see something coming closer to her. She couldn't make out what it was. But then it happened, and her world became dark. Her body gave way, the muscles stopped, the joints stopped moving, everything stopped. All she felt was the cold sea waters rush over her, and surround her.  
  
Doubar looked with the magnescope at the waters. All he saw was the longboat, but no Sinbad.  
  
"Do you see him?" Firouz asked  
  
"No, nothing" Doubar scanned the area once more  
  
Sinbad swam below the waters, searching for his love, searching for her. He would not lose her, not again, and not to the sea. He wouldn't let the sea take anyone away ever again.  
  
Where could she be? He spotted a glow of red. It had to be her. He swam closer and saw her floating down. Maeve! It was her! She swam all that distance just to reach him. He grabbed her arm, and pulled her closer to him as he headed up towards the surface.  
  
They came up, he was gasping for air, but she wasn't. He swam over to the longboat and put her in.  
  
"Maeve! Maeve! You made it! You're here! Wake up!" Sinbad said as he tried to wake her  
  
She just lay there.He pushed her short red hair back, she cut it just for him.  
  
"Cmon, wake up! Wake up!" Sinbad yelled at her  
  
"By Allah! I'm sorry for sailing off without you! I'm so damn sorry! Wake up and yell at me! Wake up!"  
  
But she didn't and wouldn't. Sinbad stopped shaking her. Her body was limp, and there was nothing he could do about it.  
  
"Don't you leave me! Don't!" He pounded on her chest, "DON'T!" he pounded hard with anger.  
  
She gasped for air as she was thrown forward into his arms, spitting up the salty water.  
  
"Maeve!" Sinbad held her  
  
She kept coughing and finally stopped. It took a while before she cought her breath.  
  
"I made it" Maeve said with smile  
  
"Yeah, you did" Sinbad smiled back  
  
"I told you I had great stamina"  
  
Sinbad held her close as she rested her head on his shoulder. At last they were together.  
  
"Hey! You two!" Doubar yelled, "You'd like to join us on the ship now?"  
  
Sinbad rowed the longboat back to the Nomad, he was glad to have her back. The moment her feet touched the deck, Sinbad grabbed her and kissed her senseless. The crew just stood there and laughed.  
  
"Welcome aboard" Sinbad said  
  
Maeve smiled, but her legs gave way and fell. Sinbad caught her.  
  
"Are you alright?" Sinbad asked  
  
"Yeah"  
  
"I'll have a look at her" Firouz said  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Dermott arrived at the port. He saw that the Nomad had left, with Maeve on it probably. He walked towards the end of the doc when he noticed something. It was her bag. He picked it up. Why would she leave it here?  
  
"Excuse me, when did the ship leave?" Dermott asked the man  
  
"The ship that was here? Left around noon"  
  
"Noon?" Dermott thought, noon?  
  
Noon? Maeve was still there around noon, could it be he left without her? Or was this a ploy to throw him off?  
  
"Was there a woman on board?"  
  
"Woman? Not unless you count the man being carried off by his first mate"  
  
Doubar was carring Sinbad, so where is Maeve?  
  
"When's the next ship leaving?"  
  
"There, hurry if you want to catch it" the man pointed  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Back on the Nomad, Maeve lay comfortable in Sinbad's cabin. Firouz looked up at Sinbad who was hoovering over him.  
  
"She's fine, she just needs some rest that's all, she's worn out most of her muscles" Firouz said  
  
"I swam all the way here" Maeve replied  
  
"And no strenous activities" Firouz looked at Sinbad with that look.  
  
"Ok!" Sinbad yelled back  
  
"I mean it!" Firouz said  
  
"What do you take me for? Some animal in heat?" Sinbad sat next to her  
  
Firouz gave him that look again, and threw his hands up in the air.  "I give up! Nobody ever listens to me!" Firouz left the room  
  
"Thought he'd never leave!"Sinbad pounced on her  
  
"Sinbad!" Maeve yelled  
  
Sinbad held her close and kissed her soft lips. He positioned himself ontop of her and craddled her face.  
  
"Sinbad, there's something I have to tell you"Maeve said between kisses  
  
"It can wait" Sinbad replied  
  
"I'm a married woman now"  
  
"Then let's do what all married women do on their wedding night then" Sinbad sat up and took his shirt off, revealing those wonderful sculpted muscles. He leaned back down and claimed her lips once again.  
  
"I love you Maeve"  
  
"Say it again"  
  
"I love you"  
  
Maeve rested her head on Sinbad's chest. She played with the brown hairs as she watched his chest rise and fall. She could feel his heart beating, for her almost. She placed her leg on his and snuggled closer to him. She was glad to be with him, in his arms.  
  
"I could stay here all day" Maeve said  
  
"You could" Sinbad replied stroking her red hair  
  
"Wouldn't the Nomad miss their wonderful captain?"  
  
"Doubar can manage" He rolled her onto her back, and slid his arms under her.  
  
"Can you manage not being in control of the ship? Letting someone else captain it?"  
  
"As long as it's smooth sailing, what difference does it make who's sailing?" He leaned in for a kiss. She kissed him back and then gently pushed him off.  
  
"Well then, am I part of your valuable crew now?"  
  
"Of course, very valuable" he started kissing her face  
  
"Any orders captain?"  
  
"Just one" Sinbad smiled  
  
But then there was a loud crash from the deck above them. They heard the clash of swords and the sounds of bodies falling onto the boards. Sinbad got off Maeve and reached for his breeches. Maeve sat up and held the sheet close to her body.  
  
"Stay here, until I get back" Sinbad grabbed his sword and left  
  
Maeve reached for her clothes and pulled them on, not listening to what he just said.  Sinbad ran up and saw that it was Dermott, fighting with his crew. Sinbad interrupted the fight between Dermott and Firouz.  
  
"I have to ask you to leave" Sinbad said raising his sword.  
  
"You know why I'm here" Dermott said, "From the looks of it so does everyone else" Dermott looked at the half dressed captain.  
  
"Don't know what you're talking about" Sinbad said  
  
"I have to bring her back, you know that. She must be returned"  
  
"Maybe she doesn't want to go back"  
  
"Maybe you two should stop talking about me, like I'm some kind of prize that's being shifted back and forth!" Maeve yelled  
  
The two men looked up at her, standing there, wearing a large white shirt, and black leather pants.  
  
"Do you know how much trouble you've caused?" Dermott yelled  
  
"What trouble? I married him didn't I? I did my part! You never said that I had to stay!" Maeve smiled  
  
"When they find out that you're missing, all hell will break loose! There will be war! You know this! How can you do this?!"  
  
"The alliance has been made, what else do you want from me?!" she yelled  
  
"You have to come back!"  
  
"She already said that she doesn't want to" Sinbad stood infront of her  
  
"Get out of my way"  
  
"You know I won't"  
  
"Then you know that I must kill you then"  
  
Dermott lunged forward with his sword, Sinbad blocked it and the two fought, moving over the deck of the Nomad. The crew just stood there, not knowing what to do.  
  
"Stop it!" Maeve yelled  
  
But it seemed that they ignored her and kept fighting, until Dermott had gained the upper hand, his blade made it's way to Sinbad's neck. It pressed upon it.  
  
"I'm taking her with me" Dermott said  
  
"You'll have to kill me" Sinbad said  
  
Dermott looked up, and pulled his sword away. Sinbad looked up wondering why he stopped. Dermott leaned onto the railing.  
  
"I'm too late" Dermott looked back at what was once a green lush island, now emiting black smoke and chaos.  
  
"What's happening?" Firouz asked  
  
"War" Dermott walked away and back to the longboat that carried him there.  
  
"Wait!" Maeve chased after him  
  
"I can't wait! Our people are dying! Your people are dying!"  
  
"No, it can't be"  
  
"This is a blood bath, because you left, our people are fighting for their lives. Their blood is on your hands"  
  
"Dermott...." her voice fell  
  
"I'm going back, do what you want, either way our people are dying. Our clan may not be there when I get back, father may already be dead, but at least I know that I went back there, and I did the right thing, I fought for our people!"  
  
Dermott slid down the rope and into the rowboat and started rowing towards shore. Maeve watched him. He blamed her for all this, and in a way he was right. It was her fault, she left, and because of that the consequence of her actions, led to the suffering of innocent people, her people. She felt her heart breaking.  
  
"Tell me one thing!" Dermott yelled from the distance.  
  
Maeve looked up and acknowledged him.  
  
"Was it worth it?!" Dermott yelled  
  
Maeve turned around, on the verge of tears, and walked back to the cabin. She didn't know anymore. She had the love of her life, but the blood of her people on her hands. Blood that would never be washed away.  
  
She fell onto the bed and cried.  
  
"Why?! Why?!" she screamed out  
  
Maeve hugged the pillow closer to her. She knew that it was her fault. Dermott was right about that. She was selfish, she only wanted to be with Sinbad, but she was betrothed to another.  She felt a warm hand on her and she looked up. It was Sinbad looking at her with those warm blue eyes of his.  
  
"It is my fault" Maeve said  
  
"It's not your fault, a war cannot be soley one person's fault"  
  
"It is, I ran away"  
  
"You did what you had to do"  
  
"I have to go back, I have to help my people"  
  
"We will, we're heading back to Eire"  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Dermott rode his horse towards where his house used to be. It was in flames, everything was in flames. People were screaming, blades slicing through flesh, children burning. It was hell on earth, except the mortals were the demons.  
  
"Father! Father!" Dermott searched for him  
  
"Dermott!" a voice called  
  
Dermott saw a figure and rode towards it. It was his friend, Decan. He pulled him onto the horse.  
  
"We must go to the mountains" Decan said  
  
"I cannot without my father"  
  
"He has been captured"  
  
"Damn them!"  
  
"They realized that your sister ran away, they declared it an act of war, that she had no intention of sanctifying the alliance. Distrust broke out among the clans and tribes. All of them"  
  
"All of them?"  
  
"They felt as if we could no longer be trusted. We're not fighting them now, we're fighting all of us"  
  
"Then it truly is hell on earth"  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Maeve and the crew pulled the longboats to shore. She never imagined she would ever return to Eire again. They walked toward the smoke, and saw the battered bodies of her people, some dead, some dying, some waiting for death to claim them.  
  
"What have I done?" Maeve said  
  
The war between the clans and tribes had truly been brutal, no one was left standing, or to bury the dead. The stench of death followed Maeve as she walked through the sea port town.  
  
The sounds of horses came from behind them and they jumped out of the way. When the dust clearned, they saw that they were Breians riding towards the mountains.  
  
"Where are they going?" Sinbad asked  
  
"To the mountains, that's where my people used to go during the battles, they would be safe there" Maeve replied  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Dermott looked down from the mountains. He could see the Breians coming with their horses, and a wagon. He took a few men and took a closer look. He was horrified at what he saw. It was his father, they had taken him, and hung his arms to a log, which was placed on top of the wagon, so he would be on his tip toes. His feet ached, the ropes were cutting the circulation from his hands. And his back was covered with numerous whip marks.  
  
"Father!" Dermott said  
  
"What are they going to do to him?" Decan asked  
  
"Make him an example" Dermott replied coldly  
  
   
  
   
  
Part 2  
  
   
  
Sacrifice of Love  
  
By:  Ethereal Prey  
  
~Part 2~  
  
  
  
Maeve and the others made their way to the mountains where they saw the Breians. Maeve narrowed her eyes as she tried to focus on the wagon.  
  
"By the gods! NO!" Maeve was going to run to her father, but Sinbad held her back.  
  
"If they see you, they'll kill you!" Sinbad whispered  
  
"Give me your bow Decan" Dermott extended his arm out  
  
Decan handed over the bow and arrow and watched what Dermott was doing. He watched the Breians down below surround his father. One came forth and raised his sword to strike him. Dermott with the eyes of a hawk, shot the arrow, dead center through the heart of his father's would be attacker.  
  
The Breians looked up.  
  
"You broke the alliance with us! And for that you all must pay!" a Breian yelled  
  
"Your war is with me, and not the other clans!" Dermott yelled back  
  
"They followed you and your clan and for that they all must pay"  
  
"No! It is not their fault for what happened. It is my sister that abandoned us, your war is with my family"  
  
"Your sister? If she is to return before the next full moon, this will all end"  
  
"My sister has run off, disgracing us"  
  
"Then there is no other way"  
  
The Breians all raised their swords and were about to strike Dermott's father. Dermott realized that he couldn't save him, that he could only shoot one arrow at a time. His eyes met with his fathers, as he weakly nodded.  
  
Dermott swallowed the lump in his throat, and closed his eyes.  
  
"Let the gods forgive me" Dermott opened his eyes, as the Breians were about to gut his father alive, he let go of the arrow. The arrow pierced through the air and made it's way, embbeded itself into the heart of a Celt.  
  
"NOOOOO!!!!!" Maeve screamed, as Sinbad held her back. He held her down, and covered her mouth. He could feel the warm tears falling onto his hand. He held her close and looked back.  
  
The Breians lowered their swords and turned back to face Dermott. The image was burned in Dermott's memory.  
  
"May the roads rise up to greet you father" Dermott said as he turned around and walked away.  
  
The Breians didn't know what to do now. He was already killed, and by his son no less. They turned back with the wagon and headed into the already burning village.  
  
Sinbad held Maeve like a frightened child. There was nothing he could do for her. She just lay there, crying. She had lost so much, her freedom, her family, her brother, and now her father.  
  
Dermott walked back to where the people were hiding. Decan followed him back quietly.  
  
"You are now the head of our clan" Decan said  
  
"We have no clan" Dermott replied  
  
"We are still here, and we will fight to the last man"  
  
"Then you're wasting your lives. Leave here while you still can"  
  
Sinbad the the crew were walking back to the burning village. Maeve's body had gone numb, and Sinbad had to carry her back.  
  
There was nothing left. There were small pockets of fires, but everything was burnt into ashes.  
  
"Can you stand?" Sinbad asked Maeve  
  
She merely nodded, as he gently placed her feet back onto the ground. They made their way past the chaos and misery, until Maeve stopped.  
  
"What's wrong?" Sinbad asked  
  
Maeve didn't say anything. She reached behind Sinbad, to where he kept his dagger and threw it through the air, where it cut the rope of a man hanging upside down in the flames.  
  
The charred body fell to the ground, the arrow embedded in its chest still burning. Maeve rushed over to it but couldn't touch it, for the flames. Sinbad held her arms back to keep herself from burning. Firouz came with a bucket of brown water and splashed it on the body. The flames went out and revealed the charred, burnt face.  
  
"Oh father! I'm so sorry! I'm so sorry!" Maeve threw herself on his body as she started to cry again.  
  
The crew didn't know what to say or do.  
  
"It's all my fault...it's all my fault...I'm so sorry! Let the gods forgive me...I'll make it as it should be father...I swear it. I'll make everything the way it's suppose to be"  
  
   
  
   
  
Part 3 (conclusion)  
  
   
  
Sacrifice of Love  
  
By:  Ethereal Prey  
  
~Part 3~  
  
  
  
Maeve looked over at the freshly covered dirt on the ground.  
  
"Forgive me father" she whispered  
  
Sinbad and the others merely looked on at her. She stood there quietly. Sinbad didn't know what to say or do. She had been like this since the village. Maeve quietly said something in Gaelic and started walking off.  
  
"Wait! Maeve!" Sinbad chased after her, "Where are you going?"  
  
"To see Dermott"  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Hours later, Maeve returned to the ship, where Sinbad was anxiously waiting. He didn't know where she went, if she really went to see Dermott or not. She entered the room quietly as Sinbad stood up to greet her.  
  
"Are you alright?" Sinbad asked, genuinely concerned.  
  
"I'm fine, I went to see Dermott"  
  
"What did he say?"  
  
"Nothing, nothing at all Sinbad" she said as she held his face in her hands.  
  
She lied. For the first time, she lied to him.  
  
"I was worried about you"  
  
"You captain? Worried about little me?" she teased  
  
Sinbad playfully pushed her back onto the bed and kissed her.  
  
"I love you Sinbad"  
  
"I love you as well, I'll always love you"  
  
"Say it again"  
  
"I love you Maeve"  
  
With that Maeve brought his head down to hers and kissed him. Her hands slid onto his bare skin as she felt the clothing surrounding her slide off. She could feel his warm skin on hers, his heart beating for her, she felt his love surround her.  
  
The hours passed, and Sinbad fell asleep. Maeve got up and loosened herself away from his arms. She looked at him one last time, as she kissed him, and quietly got dressed and slipped away.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Maeve mounted the horse that waited for her near the port. She looked back at the Nomad one last time, and rode away into the darkness. Dermott's words burned through her.  
  
"I blame you Maeve! You are the sole reason our lands are in turmoil! You ran off, you caused this! YOU!"  
  
"But Dermott!"  
  
"You caused all this! I hope you're happy! Right now I have no tribe, I have no land, and I have no family!"  
  
Maeve shook her head as she saw through the clearing. She saw the building, the lights, she knew what she had to do. She reached the gates. But all she could think of was him. His blue eyes.  
  
She entered the building, and went up the stairs and down the hallway. She opened the door, and there he was standing there. His hazel eyes met hers.  
  
"What are you doing here?"  
  
"I've come to make up for my past mistakes"  
  
"Our tribes are at war"  
  
"I know, I know that I am the cause of it"  
  
"Our union would have prevented this"  
  
"Your father said if I returned before the next moon all this would end"  
  
"He said that, I have no say in this"  
  
"Then we are both trapped"  
  
"Go now, before things get worse"  
  
"No, I am here to make amends. Our union will end all this" she approached him  
  
He looked at her, strangely.  
  
"I give myself as an offering" she placed her arms around him  
  
"You give yourself freely?"  
  
"Yes" she stepped back and released the clasp to her cloak revealing the white dress underneath.  
  
The white fabric reached her ankles, and had a small rope belt. It was tied at the shoulders with a slight plunge in the front. She looked very virginal to say the least, even if she wasn't. She took the rope belt off. She untied the two knots at the shoulders and the white fabric fell to the floor. She walked to him, and placed her arms around him.  
  
"I give myself freely"  
  
She lied. All she could think of was his eyes, blue eyes, that would pierce through her soul. Blue eyes that would be hurt, once the truth was known. Blue eyes that would never look upon her again. Sinbad. Forgive me.  
  
Sinbad woke up instantly as if he could hear her. He looked to the side and realized she wasn't there.  
  
"Maeve! Where are you?!" he yelled, but he got no answer  
  
Morning broke, and the sun's rays peaked through. Maeve looked up from where she was. She was in another man's arms. There would be no forgiveness for this, ever. She quietly got up and got dressed. She sat near the window and gazed out.  
  
Sinbad had been searching the whole area during the night. He was a man obsessed, it was Maeve. He felt this strange feeling that something was wrong. He just didn't know what.  
  
"Sinbad!" Doubar yelled  
  
"What is it?"  
  
"There's a celebration?"  
  
"What? Where?"  
  
"Come I'll show you" Doubar lead him through the forest to the gates, which were open.  
  
"What's going on?" Sinbad asked.  
  
"Haven't the faintest clue, people stopped fighting and started celebrating"  
  
And from the balcony, two figures appeared.  
  
"No!" Sinbad yelled out  
  
The two figures stood there, holding hands as they raised their hands into the air.  
  
"Peace will prevail once again!" the man shouted, "Now that she has returned to us"  
  
Maeve stood there quiet, and numb, unable to say anything. Yes peace was achieved, but at a price. Her heart. She kept her promise, she would make everything as it should be, she returned to the man she didn't love, she gave herself to him, she made everything the way she said it would, but inside she felt like dying. Peace was achieved with the clans and tribes again, but she couldn't have him. She couldn't love him.  
  
"Maeve! MAEVE!" Sinbad yelled as he ran towards the balcony  
  
Maeve looked down and saw him, standing there, confused and hurt. She couldn't bare to look him in the eyes.  
  
"Who is that?" the man's father asked  
  
"No one" Maeve quickly replied.  
  
"MAEVE!" Sinbad yelled as he tried to scale the walls, but was pulled down by the surrounding Celts.  
  
"He is the one you ran away with! How dare you bring him here! To make fools of us!" his father yelled.  
  
"NO!" Maeve yelled back.  
  
Sinbad kicked the Celts and climbed up to the balcony. Dermott entered through the gates, after hearing the news that Maeve had indeed returned. He saw Sinbad climbing up to meet her.  
  
"You have decieved us again!"  
  
"No!" Maeve protested.  
  
Sinbad made his way up and climbed onto the balcony.  
  
"Maeve!" Sinbad yelled as he reached for her.  
  
"Sinbad!" Maeve yelled.  
  
"Maeve!" her husband yelled at her.  
  
"So you are the one that took her" his father yelled, "And so you've come to humiliate us again!"  
  
"You're doing a fine job of it" Sinbad grinned.  
  
The man drew his sword, and unfortunately Sinbad didn't have his. Maeve instinctivly jumped in front of him.  
  
"Please, he means no harm, please just let him go" Maeve pleaded.  
  
"You still love him don't you?" her husband asked her.  
  
"Please, don't hurt him. I'll stay if you let him go."  
  
"Never!" he pulled her away.  
  
His father charged at Sinbad with the sword, but Sinbad jumped and got out of the way.  
  
"I'm really not in the mood for this" Sinbad said.  
  
"Die you barbarian!"  
  
Her husband held her, while the two fought.  
  
"Stop it! STOP IT!" she yelled.  
  
Dermott saw the commotion along with everybody else. He sighed. He knew this would not be easily, nothing with Maeve or Sinbad ever came as that.  The fighting continued, until the man had Sinbad onto the floor, his sword to his neck.  
  
"Now I will have the last word"  
  
"NO!" Maeve finally broke free and pushed him away.  
  
"Go NOW!" she yelled at Sinbad.  
  
"Not without you!"  
  
"GO!" She pushed him towards the balcony, "GO!"  
  
She wanted him to leave, to be free, to live. In her heart she would always love him, even if she was married to another.  
  
"Go, please" she pleaded as the tears started to form.  
  
"Maeve..."  
  
"DIE YOU B****RD!" the father threw his sword at Sinbad.  
  
"NOOOO!" Maeve yelled.  
  
"NOOO!" Dermott yelled as the saw the sword pierce the air.  
  
The crowd gasped as they saw the sword embed itself into the chest of the victim. Maeve held onto Sinbad as she fell to the ground, the sword went through her back. Sinbad couldn't believe what had happened. She shielded him. He pulled the sword out of her and threw it aside.  
  
"Maeve..." Sinbad held her.  
  
"Why couldn't you just go?" Maeve spoke quietly.  
  
"Not without you, never without you"  
  
"I love you"  
  
"No, don't leave me! Don't you leave me!"  
  
"MAEVE!" Dermott yelled as he came rushing in.  
  
"Everything is as it should be" Maeve gasped out.  
  
"No, no it's not"  
  
"I'm sorry"  
  
"No! You're all that I have left Maeve" Dermott pulled her into his arms.  
  
"Our clan needs a leader Dermott"  
  
"Maeve..."  
  
"I returned, peace was established, that's all that matters. All that matters" Maeve voice faded.  
  
Dermott's cry echoed through the air, as his sister's soul left her body. Dermott looked up first at Sinbad, and then at the Breinain husband, and his father.  
  
"I hope you're all satisfied"  
  
They were all without words along with the crowd watching.  
  
"You killed my sister, but because our clans and tribes are joined I cannot seek vengence upon you. Our clans are joined, and peace will continue. But because you are my sister's murderer, I banish you and your clan back to the North" Dermott spoke as he rose up.  
  
"Why you-"  
  
"It is agreed" her widow husband added in.  
  
"Now, I have a sister to bury. Take your people back from which you came from" Dermott turned around and saw Sinbad craddling Maeve in his arms. He bent down and pulled her away.  
  
"Where are you taking her?" Sinbad asked.  
  
"Where she belongs. She's my sister"  
  
"She was my love"  
  
Dermott picked up Maeve's body.  
  
"She was your love Sinbad, was" Dermott carried her away.  
  
Sinbad sat there, as Maeve's widowed husband and father left. He sat there feeling a piece of him being carried away. A part of him that he would never be able to get back. He got up and followed Dermott. He loved Maeve also and wouldn't be denied the chance to say good bye to her.  
  
Yes he loved her, he loved her so much, he would have done anything for her. But his stubborness cost him her life. And he would have done anything to get her back. Anything. Sinbad walked down the hallway and saw the outline of Dermott carrying Maeve. On her face, it seemed that she was happy almost, that she was at peace with things. He looked at her angelic face and realized he'd never see her open her eyes again.  
  
He wiped the tears from his eyes, as he realized that they would have to bury another body, Maeve's.  
  
   
  
   
  
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